%0 Report
        %A Dickinson, David L.
%A Oxoby, Robert J.
        %T Cognitive Dissonance, Pessimism, and Behavioral Spillover Effects
        %D 2007
        %8 2007 Jun
        %I Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        %C Bonn
        %7 IZA Discussion Paper
        %N 2832
        %U https://www.iza.org/index.php/publications/dp2832
        %X This paper reports results from a unique two-stage experiment designed to examine the spillover effects of optimism and pessimism. In stage 1, we induce optimism or pessimism onto subjects by randomly assigning a high or low piece rate for performing a cognitive task. We find that participants receiving the low piece rate are significantly more pessimistic with respect to performance on this task. In stage 2 individuals participate in an ultimatum game. We find that minimum acceptable offers are significantly lower for pessimistic subjects, though this pessimism was generated in a completely unrelated environment. These results highlight the existence of important spillover effects that can be behaviorally and economically important – for example, pessimism regarding one’s initial conditions (e.g., living in poverty) may have spillover effects on one’s future labor market outcomes.
        %K experiments
%K bargaining
%K pessimism
%K optimism